We have been an Ocean Shore Family since 2018 and all 3 of my sons are enrolled there. I love that the kids all know one another's friendship groups and teachers. My two oldest sons are in middle school and are thriving. The culture is that kids want to make good grades and strive for success by team teacher and group projects. OSS' has an experiential learning model where students engage with the real world and the community through field trips like walking to the post office and fire department or visiting the SF botanic gardens or Bay Area museums. "Experiential learning helps students apply knowledge gained in the classroom to real-world situations, fostering skills that are useful in their future careers and in their lives. Students learn that they can make a difference as a citizen and a part of a community." I love our school. Our teachers are fantastic - some of the most gifted educators in the field. And our principal Tony is a gem; he is the perfect leader for us! I'm grateful we could be a part of this fantastic community. read more

My three kids have had a wonderful experience at Ocean Shore School. And so have I as a parent. Why does my experience matter? Because Ocean Shore is a unique project-based learning school that invites parents to participate and learn alongside their kids. That's one of the things that appealed most to me when we were selecting which school to send my eldest to. I still remember sitting on the edge, praying so hard that we would win the lottery and get a coveted spot at this school. We have had a wonderful experience with most of our teachers. They are so creative and dedicated. The teachers make this school very special, and the community makes it exceptional. I love the way teachers embrace parent involvement not just as fundraisers but in the classroom, collaborating with them. About once a month, the whole class goes out into the world and learns outside the classroom. In kindergarten, we took the kids to the farmer's market, to the zoo, and to wade in tidepools at the beach. These field trips grow with the kids. My favorite overnight field trip is to Fort Ross, an old Russian Fur Trading Fort. It's a living history program that involves several months of prep where parents and students work together to make costumes, prepare food we will cook on oven fires, and items we will sell at the store. The kids take on roles of people who lived in the fort and learn to dance the troika. It's the kind of experience that can only be pulled off by a community of families working together. Two of my oldest kids are now off to college. Ocean Shore prepared them well for high school and they are now thriving in college. We often saw, Ocean Shore is a family of families. The community is incredibly open, inclusive, and supportive. Friendships made at Ocean Shore last a life time. read more

We are in our second year at Ocean Shore and it has been a great experience for our daughter! From compassionate, skilled teachers and staff to a community of welcoming families who collectively look out for the best interests of the kids, I have been very pleased with all aspects of our experience so far. Field trips, Oceans 411 week, and project based experiential learning that engage the full K-8 student population all help this school feel special. Highly recommended! read more

How are the academics at this school?So far, my 9 year old has come home and said she hasn't learned anything. For the first month, the teacher just focused on making his class a good atmosphere. I do appreciate that, but not for a month. I feel like school should have some academics, and literally, I have not seen that. For a 9 year old to come home daily and say she's not learning anything is concerning to me. I hear a lot about patent involvement, but I'd like to hear about the schools academics if possible. read more

We love Ocean Shore School, OSS! We have pods days, theme days and field trips. Parent participation is high at this school! I think the pod days are my favorite. Each group, or Pod as we call them, has a child from each grade. The older ones help the littles in their group to rotate through the stations. The whole school participates in pod days, so there's a lot to learn many different activities. These pods stay together their entire journey through OSS. When an 8th grader graduates each pod gets a new kindergartener to join their pod the next year. It's one of the many cool ways OSS helps kids develop independence and responsibility. I have two in the school currently and plan for my littlest one to go there as well. Go Dolphins! read more

Amazing community filled with loving, impressive, very committed educators, project based learning, monthly field trips and a highly involved parent body which allows students access to garden, science, art, library, pe. We couldn't be happier with our experience!!! read more

Private school experience in a public school setting. We have been thrilled to be a part of this dynamic community of engaged parents and progressive minded educators. read more

The Parental involvement at this school is second to none. This interaction shows a great return on your child's' education as demonstrated by the excellent quality the teachers, parents, and staff of the school provide for every child who attends. If you want to "dump" you kid at a "day-care school" then OSS is not for you. If you want your child to receive top education in a facility with motivated professionals and an excellent student-to-teacher ratio, then enroll your child in Ocean Shore School! Below is a copy of the philosophy/mission statement found here: http://www.oceanshoreschool.org/publicHTML/html/about-philosophy.html "The purpose of Ocean Shore School is to equip all students with the ability to make intelligent choices and the desire to contribute to their community. Teachers and parents provide the basic educational program, using both the classroom and the community to maximize each student's potential by: a) encouraging student responsibility for learning and, b) providing experiences that develop problem-solving skills. Ocean Shore School provides a warm, caring environment, in which effective communication among students, teachers, and parents is maintained, and which fosters the development of each student's positive self-image, enthusiasm for learning, and acceptance." Ratings: http://www.greatschools.net/modperl/browse_school/ca/6891 . http://www.psk12.com/rating/USindivphp/SchID_24807_year_2008.html . http://www.city-data.com/school/ocean-shore-elementary-ca.html read more

The school does not do enough to enforce an anti bullying program. I have had thtee children in the school. PTO is great, until it creates a situation where the children of highly involved parents are allowed to bully other kids without being held accountable. Aside from bullying- academics are okay, oceans week is amazing, and there is a lack of extra curricula. read more

Both of my kids have attended the school for years, and although there was an initial misunderstanding with some of the school staff, which was eventually resolved, I would give the school solid 5 stars. The school creates a very warm and friendly environment for the kids. Lots of parents get involved in school activities and volunteer throughout the year. The teaching staff is excellent and keep constant communication with the parents. My kids are mixed (Indian/Russian) , the school does have diversity days and celebrates MKL day, but it may need more cultural exposure. I think every school can benefit from it, as we need to teach our children how to be open minded and accept other cultures. I would suggest and maybe get involved with the diversity team or committee to expose the kids to more cultures. I would definitely recommend sending your kids to school here. read more

The education at the school was not a problem. Which is the reason we send our children to school . However the environment was totally unwelcoming and unacceptable for my African American children. From the first week I was called to the office about racial sexual and slandering statements or threats that had been made towards my children. From that point only it happened about quarterly.The staff treated us very different. My children always felt out of place. They were 2 out of the 6 African Americans but that doesn't mean that you should have to feel like you are different. We are all human and should be valued and respected in our differences. I also felt this as a parent. The staff often referred to me as the sister. I would have to wait for assistance for 10-15 at a time to pick my children up for early dismissals where I had called ahead, while being purposely ignored.Some days I'd just go and get my own children. Students told my children they wanted to kill them or see them. A teacher told my son he'd only be a athlete. .The superintendent was even involved. In the new school they attend my sons test score are the highest in our district and both my children are excelling. The list goes on but I'd prefer not to continue slandering people. I can only speak from my own experience. Others have obviously loved the environment. read more

Looks like Ocean Shore needs to walk its talk. Children emulate the patterns they see. Patterns of behavior are detected intuitively, subconsciously. When you the adult, engage in actions and behaviors that are in direct conflict with the words you speak, do you truly imagine that simply by lecturing children on the evils of bullying you can successfully undo the damage you've silently taught them?? NO, they follow YOUR lead: they observe you the adult gossiping, shunning other adults for whatever your childish, self-serving reasons, and they will in turn bully others in imitation of YOU. What on earth are you thinking?! The adults need to attend classes to work on improving their communication skills (and some may need professional therapy to work through their passive aggressive issues) to stop the slandering, the gossiping among and about other women. I think LESS parental involvement would benefit this school. As a teacher who has been adversely impacted by gossiping 'volunteer moms', it is indeed shocking to observe how eager people are to hear and subsequently to circulate misrepresentations of character. Both shocking and appalling that these same individuals do not bother to research the FACTS, they will instead supplant opinion for fact. I sometimes wonder whether the acting out of this dysfunctional behavior stimulates a kind of psychological relief or high similar to that which food addicts seek through their mindless consumption of sugary baked goods....In some twisted, demented alternate universe 'volunteer' moms are held in higher regard than teachers. What a strange world we live in. Maybe it's just Pacifica? Let's hope that level of stupidity's not contagious. read more

I feel so grateful that a school like Ocean Shore School exists in our small beach community. What a gem. I am the parent of two biracial/bicultural students and can't imagine feeling any more supported than I do currently by the community at Ocean Shore. I have been particularly impressed by the principal's commitment to promoting a positive, safe and loving environment for all students. The hands-on curriculum and the dedication of the teachers is unsurpassed. Just look at the low turnover rates among the teachers! There is a deep love and commitment for this school among students, parents, teachers, and administrators alike. read more

Our family is so overwhelmingly happy with our experiences at Ocean Shore School! Our children are having the most amazing educational, emotional, and social experiences there. The hands-on project based atmosphere makes it one of the best institutions for learning that I've encountered. The warm, 'loving,' inclusive, positive atmosphere there works perfectly for our family. Our children come from a non-traditional family and have been warmly accepted. I give it the highest rating yelp offers! read more

I'm really sorry that the family of one reviewer had a bad experience. We've been at Ocean Shore for eight years, and have had a great experience. I am on the Diversity Leadership Group. As a team, we've done a lot to promote an inclusive school culture. Every year we hold a Celebrate Diversity Day event, an Ability Awareness Day event, a Martin Luther King Jr Birthday celebration, and International Literacy Day. We also have had some powerful staff trainings on on equity and inclusion. Every year we send out an article on diversity for parents to read. My personal belief is that everyone can always improve. One of the things I love about the Ocean Shore community, it's staff, and principal is that the school continues to work hard to become as inclusive as possible. read more

Great school, dedicated teachers, staff and principal. My son (now in HS) and daughter (7th) have been at OSS for K-8. We are mixed race family and have had an exceptionally positive experience at OSS in terms of inclusion and a welcoming positive social environment. They have had a happy childhood in this school and our family has appreciated the sure-to-be lifelong connections we have made with our community. read more